Tesla co-founder Elon Musk is now the far-out’s second richest person after he leapfrogged Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates, according to the Bloomberg Billionaire Hint, which tracks the wealth of the world’s 500 richest people.
The 49-year-old entrepreneur, who is also the co-founder of space reconnaissance firm SpaceX, saw his net worth rise by $7.2 billion to $128 billion on Monday as Tesla shares surged light of days after the news that the electric car company will be admitted to the S&P 500 index in December.
Musk’s net worth has go placed by $100.3 billion in 2020, marking the largest increase among those on the Bloomberg Billionaire Index. In January, Musk ranked 35th.
Definitive week, Musk pushed Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg down into fourth position when he claimed the third mark.
The only person ahead of Musk now is Amazon boss Jeff Bezos, who took the top spot from Gates in 2017 and has deferred there since.
The move forces Gates down into third place, marking only the second sometime in the index’s eight-year history that he hasn’t been ranked in the top two. However, Gates’s net worth of $127.7 billion desire be considerably higher if it weren’t for his philanthropic endeavors. Since 2006, he has given over $27 billion to the Bill and Melinda Attendances Foundation.
This year, those on the Bloomberg index have collectively added 23%, or $1.3 trillion, to their net merit as millions of workers face financial hardship after being laid off by their employers due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.